Gold and Green
by branbridge
Summary: Hermione struggles to deal with the consequences of her actions during the war. In a last ditch effort to escape herself she decides to study abroad for a year and come back to Hograts for their last year together. When she returns from Beauxbatons Academy she is promptly re-sorted into Slytherin rather than Gryffindor, much to the shock of everyone. Rating may change
1. Chapter 1

_Original idea from User _starlit_sky_ _

**Disclaimer:** I own none of the characters nor do I own the prompt. I simply wanted to write my own fic based on the outline she had put out. This extremely loosely compared to the original idea. ;;

**Sorry for my English! It is not my first language. :)**

**NOTES (****_PLEASE READ_****):** I want to focus on the good attributes of Slytherin and the bad attributes of Gryffindor. Also, I want to show what the war truly did to Hermione. slight AU, I'm in love with the idea that Hermione and Snape did most of the dirty work for the Order in order to avoid Harry from getting dirtied by it. So in fic they interrogated death eaters, not with the unforgivables mind you, and they were bloody brilliant at doing it.

**EDIT: I FIXED SOME OF THE PERSPECTIVE PROBLEMS!** Thank you to all who pointed out that I messed up with third person and first person, I'll try my best not to make that mistake again.

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Hermione stood awkwardly in front of the new first years waiting to be sorted to their houses. She still didn't see why she must be resorted- it was clear she'd be in Gryffindor as she had been for her entire stay at Hogwarts.

She shifted her weight; what if I don't get into Gryffindor… after all the war had changed her. It had changed her in ways most could never comprehend.

McGonagall's voice hushed the loud student body, "Let the sorting begin." She turned the get the Sorting Hat from its place on the chair, "Hermione Granger."

Hermione swallowed the last of her insecurities and accepted that she was probably going to be sorted into Gryffindor anyway. She walked up to the stage slowly gaining more confidence with every step, she sat down once she got to the chair, and McGonagall set the hat on her head.

The hat let out a laugh a few seconds after being put on her head, "Hmmm, I see the bravery, but only barely. Not nearly enough to be in Gryffindor… You do not have the patience or tolerance of a Hufflepuff. Your self-preservation and resourcefulness are at an all time high.." he rambled on for a few more minutes before making up his mind, "Gryffindor is in the past… SLYTHERIN"

The Great Hall became absolutely silent aside from a strangled whimper from the Gryffindor table. Hermione's face carefully hid her raging emotions, the only indicator of her anger was how her jaw clenched.

McGonagall removed the hat with shaking hands and said barely audible, "You may join your table."

Hermione stood up and calmly walked over to the Slytherin table. The shocked silence from her sorting didn't last long was whispers erupted, about her of course and what happened to me that changed my personality to the point of a new house. I clenched and unclenched my hands in order to calm myself, a technique I picked up attending Beauxbatons.

Hermione sat down and the Slytherin around her moved away slightly. A mix of stares went my way, betrayal and pity from the Gryffindors, confusion from the Hufflepuffs, curiosity from the Ravenclaws, and indifference to flat out hostility from the Slytherin. She absently wondered why her old house looked betrayed; this wasn't even her choice… bloody hat.

She felt an intense stare from her left, she turned and found the eyes of Draco Malfoy. He crooked his head and raised an eyebrow; he motioned for her to come over to him. It was Hermione's turn to raise an eyebrow, in the end her aching head won over her curiosity and she left the Great Hall.

* * *

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She made her way down the halls as fast as she could until she reached the library. She walked to a particularly dark corner of the library and tried to control her breathing. Her stomach did somersaults and she was grateful for her lack of eating while in Great Hall, otherwise she may of empty the food back on to the library floor.

After she calmed down to point she could move, without the assistance of the table, she sat down on the edge of the table. She ran a hand through her soft hair, expecting it to puff up after she removed her hand as it did in all her other years in Hogwarts, however, her year in Beauxbatons had taught her how to tame her wild and tight curls into a manageable soft ones that cascaded down her back and shoulders.

Her nails dug into the table more as she thought about what just happened. After a few minutes her teeth stopped grinding against each other in a feeble attempt to vent her mounting frustration. Slowly her nails released the death grip she had on the table and she moved off it. Her anger dissipated as fast as it had come and she began to think logically. This was only a minor setback- surely Harry and Ron would understand that it wasn't as if she had left them by choice.

She sighed and paced uncomfortably around the few feet she had allowed herself to occupy. Over the course of ten minutes she had comfortably come to terms with the fact that they were hurt by the sorting, but after they warmed up to the idea… she never finished her thought as she noticed a laughing Draco flanked by Blaise and a slightly concerned Pansy.

Hermione sat back down in the chair beside her. She rubbed the bridge between her forehead and nose, willing her headache away. "Yes?" she managed, she winced at how server her headache had gotten. She decided that her head and stomach aches were caused by anxiety and she made a mental note to make another bach of Draught of Peace since she was nearly out, she was sure she'd need them to deal with her new house mates.

"Come back to the Great Hall." Draco caught her eyes. She stared back and slowly she started to feel the familiar suffocating feeling that had been sneaking up on her since the war had ended. The doctors had told she was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder along with panic disorder. She didn't doubt them for a second, she knew the symptoms both and she definitely fit the bill.

Her chest constricted in pain, her breath sped up, and her hands griped the chair in an attempt to keep myself from giving into the dizzy feeling that began to claw at her mind.

Hermione managed to choke out, "I'll go back in a few minutes." Her breathing had become labored with every gulp of air and her shaking had become worse and the girl's stomach felt as if it became a solid rock. Tears threatened her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.

_I am not going to die. I am __**not **__going to die._ She repeated in my head, but only achieved making her head hurt worse. Her body was starting to shake rapidly and she reached for the draught she kept in the front pocket of my dress shirt. Hermione popped off the top the best she could with shaking hands and downed the potion. It took a while for it to take effect, but it was well worth it. Her breathing became normal and she had stopped shaking all together. Her headache was still there, but it always was.

She looked up and met the eyes of the witch first. Pansy seemed openly worried about me and moved towards me. "Are you alright?" Her voice was calming; Hermione absently asked herself it that was the draught taking affect. When Pansy touched her she stiffened, and curtly shook her head up and down slightly. Pansy removed her hand and took a step back from Hermione.

Hermione risked a glance at the two wizards that had been there for her embarrassing lack of self control. She fidgeted in her seat; she opened her mouth to say something, but closed it.

"Ten minutes, Grander." Draco walked out of the library. Blaise gave her one final look before following Draco out of the room.

Pansy looked at the remaining, "What was that, Hermione?" Pansy said her name softly, as if testing it out to see how she'd react.

Hermione looked up at Pansy; this girl had reasons to hate her, **many **reasons to actually, but here she stood stroking Hermione's hair and whispering in her ear. Hermione felt an throbbing sensation in her gut.

.

_Pansy has done more to console her in the past three minutes than my best friends have in the past seven years._

_Bloody hell._


	2. Chapter 2

**English is not my first language so I apologize for any mistakes. :)**

_I wanted this chapter to show how Pansy and Draco took to Hermione's short breakdown. It also showed how Pansy had matured and how she had originally felt towards the muggle born witch. Someone messaged me telling me how strange it was that Pansy took so fast to Hermione- I'll get to why in later chapters, but it mainly because Slytherin or otherwise, who can look at Hermione broken and truly be happy in it. I've always loved Pansy and Hermione friendships (I perfer then to Hermione and Ginny tbch) and I've always thought that Pansy never truly hated Hermione in their school years. _

ENJOY AND I LOVE MY REVIEWS HELLA THANKS

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After Pansy had seen her former enemy so broken she couldn't help but feel a rush of sympathy for Hermione. The look of pure terror in her eyes, as she frantically fumbled for the potion that resided in her front shirt pocket, was something she thought she'd never see on the other witch's face. Never in a million did she think she would see Hermione Granger, war hero and most clever witch of the past few generations, so unhinged.

She turned to Draco for guidance, but he looked more surprised and confused than Pansy did. Blaise tried to keep his Slytherin mask; however, he it was clear that he was affected by the scene unfolding before him.

Before Pansy could properly react to Hermione's actions, the former Gryffindor sank back into her chair and looked up at the trio. Hermione's eyes met Pansy's at first, Pansy reacted instantly and she asked, "Are you alright?" Hermione continued to look at her with blank eyes, Pansy shuddered. She cautiously reached out towards the slightly shaking girl. Pansy's hand barely touched Hermione's clammy skin before she tensed and subconsciously moved away from her touch. Pansy was hurt by her action, but understood it.

They hadn't been friends before the war and it was only natural for them to remain at odds afterwards. She didn't even particularly hate her fellow witch, but prejudice runs deep and she couldn't help being cruel in fear of the backlash for being anything less.

No, she should of reached out towards the girl no matter the consequences. She genuinely took no comfort or entrainment from the cruel treatment of her over the years. Pansy regretted every outright and veiled insult towards the girl, especially when she had called her 'mudblood'. Hermione did nothing to deserve such words; they had been children… but was that truly an excuse?

Hermione's curt nod made Pansy pause and move her fingers from Granger's cheek. Pansy didn't miss the look of defeat in her eyes as she gazed at Draco. Draco looked at her for a few seconds; Draco broke the brief look and turned.

"Ten minutes, Granger." Draco's jaw tensed after he said those words and walked out of the library quickly.

Blaise spared Hermione one last look, he looked concerned, but he made none of those worries vocal. He shortly followed his best friend from the library.

Pansy softly touched Hermione's hand; she doubted the witch noticed though. She struggled with all the questions she wanted to ask. Her voice cracked and she lamely asked, "What was that, Hermione?"

She held her breath. She waited for Hermione to ask her to not say her name. She expected insults or a hurt look.

She received none of that, no, she simply received a straggled whimper from the girl's lips. Within seconds Pansy had wrapped her arms around the witch. Hermione crumbled into her embrace automatically; she clung to the pureblood witch for dear life, sobbing into her shirt. Pansy whispered calming words into her ear and stroked her hair.

If Pansy didn't know better she would of assumed her fellow witch in front of her had been scarcely, if at all, comforted after her ordeal in the war.

_Well…_ Pansy thought, _I don't really know better_.

Realization struck her like a bag of bricks, her grip on the girl tightened slightly.

_Bastards_.

* * *

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Draco swiftly left the library as fast as he could. His thoughts screaming in his head.

_What the bloody hell happened to Granger? _

He knew that she done worse things in war time than Potter or Weasly, but he hadn't expected that level of brokenness. Especially not after what they had seen in the Grand Hall, she had held her head high. He had followed her to the library with the illusion she'd be reading a book waiting for class to start, he had assumed that she was her know-it-all self.

Nothing he had ever seen could have prepared him for the girl he had seen in that room. He felt his jaw tensed as his thoughts continued.

It took every ounce of his self control to not rip apart everything in the hallway as he made his way back to the Grand Hall.

By the time Blaise caught up to him his normal calm facade was back in place.

He walked through the doors to his table, flanked by his best friend. He sat down and ignored the curious looks of his fellow Slytherin and the occasional Ravenclaw.

He could feel Potter's eyes locked on him, he looked up and met his glare.

_If only looks could kill._

He paused at the thought, his mind flashing back to Granger's fearful eyes. He hadn't seen that amount of fear even when she was tortured in his home. He sighed inwardly, he was thinking too much.

The doors of the Grand Hall opened once again and looked towards them. Pansy rushed to the Slytherin table, Hermione in tow. Hermione's carefully glamour-charmed face betrayed none of the tears she had shed. Malfoy could only slightly make out the soft smile that graced her lips as Pansy sat her down by her.

_Bloody hell._


	3. Chapter 3

Hello again! :)

I rewrote this chapter a few times and I think I'm finally pleased with it.

Thank you all for all the wonderful feedback I've gotten! I love ALL of you.

I've, also, went back and fixed most of the obvious mistakes in the first chapter. (Huge thanks to AuggieDeeksNico who pointed it out in her review!)

**Notes: **For this chapter I wanted to show how strained Hermione's and Ron's friendship really was. I also wanted to show how Harry's constant need to keep Ron on his side had damaged his relationship with his other best friend. I see Harry as turning a blind eye to Ron's insults, out of fear of losing both. He recognized that it;d be easier to side with Hermione on most issues, but he also recognized that she was the most likely to leave if he messed up too severely. So instead of going with what's right he goes with what's easier.

Also, the pairing for this is a secret. c; You'll find out as relationships grow between Hermione and her new housemates.

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Hermione was surprised when Pansy had cast a glamour charm on her after she finished crying.

"Just in case, we don't want anyone thinking you weak," she mumbled with a tentative smile on her face.

Hermione returned her smile the best she could and hoarsely thanked her, "Thank you… for all of this."

Pansy beamed, "It was nothing. If you ever need anything ask."

Hermione's smile became warmer and she allowed the witch to grab her hand. Before she could ask if they were in fact going back to the Great Hall Pansy had already dragged half of the way there.

Pansy rattled off some information about her house, which people was the most dangerous to her, back story on their head, and naturally the password to the dungeon. All the while Pansy had big grin on her face. Slowly Hermione returned the gesture and smiled back. When they returned to the Great Hall the two were both openly accepting both, Hermione's lips were tugged up into a soft smile.

_Maybe this year wouldn't be so bad._

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Hermione and Pansy sat down beside Draco, who nodded in acceptance. Blaise eyed the brunette from across the table. He took in her newer appearance, she had gotten quite attractive over her time abroad, the bird's nest of curls that she once called her hair was now collection of soft curls that reached past her shoulders and frame her face in a light creamy brown. Her skin a rich peaches-and-cream tone, he could vaguely see a thin white scar running above her collar bone.

Hermione looked up towards the glaze and locked eyes with Blaise, who offered her a smile. She returned it slowly. He went back to his food and Hermione went back to talking to Pansy.

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Hermione laughed at something Pansy had said, bad choice. The entire Gryffindor table turned to look at their former housemate. Most out of confusion or concern, Ron's eyes held mistrust and resentment.

_Just great_, Hermione thought, _just what I needed_.

Hermione head began to throb uncontrollably again and she winced. Her hand flew to the forehead where she made circular motions in an attempted to sooth her fried nerves. Soon her headache subsided to a bearable stinging pain in her temple.

She attempted to eat some of the food in front of her, which only succeeded in making her stomach worse. After grumbling about her god forsaken appetite under her breath she allowed herself to look around the hall. She noticed that the 1st and 2nd year Slytherin were eyeing her with wary suspicion, she spared them a forced smile. Majority turned back to their food after she noticed their glare, however, some simply leered harder after Hermione noticed their not-so-subtle scare tactic.

_Amateurs_.

Her eyes darted to the other tables; some of the Ravenclaws looked at her with curiosity, but for the most part were over the initial surprise. The Hufflepuff much like the Gryffindors looked on me as if she had been kidnapped by the enemy and shortly afterwards gleefully jumped into bed with them.

She absently thought about the hypocritical nature of both those houses, they claimed that blood status and other prejudice be thrown out the window, however, they couldn't put aside their hatred for a whole house hold.

_With that sort of thinking one can only wonder how long until the next war began_. She sighed she could only hope it wouldn't be in her time.

Her head began throbbing again; she needed to go to the infirmary to get something for it. She excused herself from the table politely and smiled at Pansy telling her she'd see her in common's room. Pansy beamed and told her she was looking forward to talking to Hermione more. Hermione's smile grew and she agreed that they did need to get to know each other. She soon got up and left nodded towards Draco and Blaise as she made her way out of the hall.

She had made it half way across the hall before her bumbling idiot of a friend, or ex-friend, decided to pay his dues.

"Bloody traitor."

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Hermione stopped and slowly turned on her heels. The look in her eyes made the 1st and 2nd year Gryffindors cower and move farther down the table, who had never experienced her wrath but heard how terrible it was. Most of the older Gryffindors stared from her back to Ron. Harry's eyes looking anywhere but at her, she expected nothing less from Harry though. He had never had the guts to stand up to his friend in fear of losing him, naturally that courtesy was never extended to her.

In the few moments it took to walk to the Gryffindor table she came to terms with her resentment towards them all.

Maybe it was a good thing the hate sorted her into Slytherin, otherwise she may have killed Ron this year. Not to say she wasn't tempted to kill him simply for being a prick.

Her icy stare caused Weasly to flinch, his mind working overdrive and came to the conclusion that he had just made an extremely bad choice.

"Excuse me?" Hermione's voice rang across the now silent hall, everyone waiting to see what hex Hermione would cast on the poor bloke.

Ronald sputtered out her words as he got up to meet her at his full height, "You heard me."

"No, I don't believe I did. Please repeat it, so when I hex you I know I did so for good reason."

Ron scowled, "Well Miss Perfect is already under the influence of those damn snakes. Are you pleased knowing you threw away me and Harry for them? Clearly friendship means nothing to you."

What possessed her to say what she did next, Hermione knows not. In retrospect she would tell everyone that she _thinks_ she was simply tired of it, in reality she _knew _she was tired of it.

Her hands clenched and unclenched as she simply sighed, she caught Harry's eye. The boy's eyes widened and seemed to try to convey how sorry she was for their, no his, friend's behavior. Of course Harry made no move to reprimand Ron, she wanted to hit both of them, but refrained from doing so. Settling for making everyone hate him for being so hateful throughout the years to the girl most of them respected.

Hermione looked at him, her eyes holding the hatred and resentment that had gathered in her heart over the years. She coldly said his full name, "_Ronald Bilius Weasley_, first off how _dare _you." She words laced with malice that made Ron flinch, he never heard that tone and it frighten him, "What gives _you _the right to preach about friendship to me?" Her terrifyingly calm, a tone Ron had only heard once during the war. He never considered that she would confront him over his words, he had assumed she'd run off crying and then she'd apologize the next time they saw her… She had always been the one to walk away or apologize; she was never one to lash out at him with actual anger. Ron didn't like it, it was a foreign reaction to his baiting. _Damn snakes are to blame, _he thought bitterly.

He was at a loss of words as the witched carved into him, "Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't you the one who allowed your jealousy to almost destroy your relationship with Harry and me during fourth year. A year I may remind you where his life was on the line. You treated both of us as you would to dogs, you acted as if you had the _right _to treat me like your personal owl and then you had the audacity to wonder why I was upset at you.

"If you recall that was also the Yule Ball,"

Ron froze, the Yule Ball… he knew he fucked up that year and if people knew how he treated her, their respect for the war hero would be little to none-existent. Before he could get a word in edge wise she finished what she had started.

"You do recall that tidbit don't you, Ronald? First, you rudely assumed that I hadn't a date and naturally you made it a big deal to make sure I _knew _I was your second choice. Then, I showed up with Viktor you insulted me until I left in tears." Her tone instead of being purely cold held an edge that made him feel ashamed, "You made me for the first time in my life feel utterly disgusting and worthless. Believe it or not, your cruelty that night surpassed anything my new housemates or as you called them _snakes _have ever said or done to me."

_Bloody hell, why didn't she just hit him, why did she have to drag him through the mud along the way. Damn women._

"Then in Sixth year you ruined any last shred of confidence I had and smashed in the most vindictive and cruel way possible. Must I go into detail or should I simply ask you why you thought it would be okay to have physical relations with Brown in_ my_ _bed_."

Entire hall froze; they turned to a mortified Lavender Brown trying to wiggle herself away from the negative attention and flushed Ron. Hermione's fists had been clenching and unclenching repeatedly during her speech, she barely noticed when the entire room went silent to listen to her speech. Oh, but Ron sure noticed, he was shifting around his weight, trying to avoid all the looks of disgust he was getting.

Hermione's breathing stayed steady, much to her relief, she would die of embarrassment if she has an attack while talking to Ron.

"Let's not forget when you abandoned me and Harry while we were trying to find the Horcrux. Yet, you think you have the _right _to lecture to me about friendship?" She shook her in obvious disgust, "Don't push your insecurities on me to make yourself feel better.

She turned on her heels and started to walk out of the hall.

"Says the witch who barely did shit in the war."

That was the final straw, she turned to face him and balled up her fist. Which she promptly slammed into the bridge of his nose, rewarding her with the sound of it breaking. Ron cursed bloody murder and Hermione turned from him once more.

She waved as she walked away, "Whoops."

With that she left the hall.


	4. Chapter 4

Thank you for all the positive reviews! I love you all. (I'm also looking for someone who would be willing to proof read my chapters before I post them. PM if you're willing.)

**NOTES:** In this story Hermione has a deep connection with Snape, I'll go into it more in the next chapter or the one after. Again, **the pairing in this is not decided** yet. I can guarantee it won't be Hermione/Pansy, I agree the pairing is good... but I think Hermione will need a girl _friend_ in order to heal more than a girlfriend.

I'm sorry for my English before hand. I'm slowly getting better, but it's not my first language.

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It took a minute for the fact that sweet ol' Hermione had struck Ron, the Gryffindor's Quidditch Keeper in the nose, to fully sink in. The Hufflepuffs locked jaws unhinged from the shock. The Ravenclaws all turned to watch the action play out, curiosity openly visible on their faces. The Slytherin and Gryffindors both too shocked to speak.

It was Draco's snicker that broke the silence; soon everyone's eyes narrowed at the ginger. Eventually they all looked back at their food, silently thinking over the newly public information about the golden trio's true relationship.

No one at Ron's table moved to help him, forcing Ronald to walk to the infirmary on his own. He cursed the entire way there.

* * *

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_No. This is all wrong. _That's all that ran through Harry's brain as he watched Hermione punch Ron. Seconds after it happened he mumbled, "Damn that girl had a mighty fine right hook." He quickly clamped his mouth shut to avoid being noticed. Unfortunately the eyes of Neville and Ginny had found his head.

He couldn't bring himself to meet the eyes of his at-one-time-sweet-heart. He knew what he would find in her stare. Instead he met the other wizard's milder stare, in hopes of it not holding the hatred of Ginny's.

Harry grimaced when he met Neville's stare. While not holding hatred, his look held something even worse. Disappointment.

_What did he know? He hadn't helped either. _Harry reasoned silently, he knew he was in the wrong. He truly did. _She didn't need my help anyway, she's not a little girl… she can take care of herself. _His frown deepened, what the hell was he thinking? Hermione was his friend, but so was Ron.

He silently fought with himself, as he absently pushed his food around his plate. _Ron is in Gryffindor so I will be spending more time with him than Hermione anyway. So of course I'd side with Ron. Plus, Hermione would definitely forgive him, right? She always has before. _He smiled, content in the knowledge that he had lost neither of his friends because of his cowardice to stand up to Ron for his behavior.

However, somewhere in his mind he knew that he had in fact lost Hermione's friendship and loyalty. He merely pushed those thoughts away in hopes it was just his paranoia. Hermione had always been the voice of reason in their small group of friends. She definitely would understand why he hadn't tried to stop Ron, she always did.

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Hermione ran down the halls, willing the tears that had gathered in the corner of her eyes away. She needed to calm down; she would never survive this year if she appeared to be weak.

_Don't let Pansy's glamour charm go to waste, Hermione._

She shyly smiled at the thought of the witch, in the past hour they had bonded more than most of her friends had in years. Hermione found herself immensely fond of the witch; Pansy had changed a lot since the war. She honestly surprised Hermione with the amount of information she had on charms and, believe it or not, muggle literature. Apparently it was her father's dirty pleasure, one she had pleasantly picked up shortly after the war.

They had talked about it until her head had gotten the better of her and she decided to leave to pick up something for it. Unfortunately Ron had other plans on how she'd spend her day; naturally he thought she'd just _love _being insulted, so he had taken it upon himself to do so.

Just thinking about the actions she had taken mortified her.

_I punched him_, she thought absently, _I bloody punch the wanker_.

She stopped running and leaned against the wall. She let out a bitter laugh and grudgingly made her way to the dungeons. She didn't feel like turning back to infirmary, especially when she expected Ron to be there for his nose, so she decided to sleep it off.

She mumbled the password and made her way into the common's room. Hermione wasn't sure where she would be bunking… damn, she should have asked Pansy.

"Ms. Granger?"

Hermione froze and turned swiftly. She recognized the voice; it belonged to one Severus Snape. Snape had once been her potions professor, but during the war he had become her confidant and truthfully her best friend. She had been shattered when she had learned of his death and never expected to hear his voice again.

When she saw his portrait hung on the way to the common's room her heart swelled and she tearfully smiled at him.

"I thought we had passed such formalities, Severus."

"So we have." Snape's normally monotone voice held an affectionate undertone, after the year he had spent alongside the young girl doing the Order's dirty work had made him respect her. Hell, he would go as far to say she had a bloody soft spot for the witch.

Hermione's voice cracked with emotions, "I missed you."

"And I you, but I'm curious as to why you're in the Slytherin commons instead of Gryffindor's."

Hermione fidgeted and focused on his frame, "Well, I went abroad for a year and when I came back they insisted on resorting me. I'm, as the hat said, better equipped for Slytherin now." Hermione held her breath as she tried to wrap her head around the events of this morning. She was not a courageous lion, but she knew she wasn't a ruthless snake.

She sighed, _no that's not right. They're not ruthless and the hat was right… I'm not fit to be in Gryffindor anymore. Actually I'm no longer sure if I want to be there. _She looked back at Snape's portrait, which looked deep in thought.

After a while Snape apologized to her, "I feel this is my fault for allowing you to participate in such gruesome thing in the war."

Hermione shook her head violently, "No. Someone had to, better it me than Harry. Can you imagine the uproar at the idea that the Golden Boy dirtied himself with torture?"

Snape gave her a thoughtful look and nodded her head, "It would be quite the story. Hermione, I think it is time for you to either go into the rooms or leave. I do not wish to discuss the war."

"I understand and Severus… I really am glad you're here, a painting or otherwise." She walked away missing the soft smirk from Snape.

* * *

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She went into the common room and sat down in a posh green arm chair. After the short but pleasant encounter with Snape, well his portrait, Hermione was feeling much better about the event that had transpired earlier. She hugged her knees to her chest and set a few trigs blaze in the fireplace with a flick of her wand. Soon she had a steady heat source that warmed her body and soothed her nerves. She pulled out a miniature book from her pocket and enlarged it.

She then made herself comfortable in the arm chair waiting for Pansy to return so she could figure out her arrangements. She settled down into her book, it was relative easy to read muggle romance. Hermione normally did not read such things, but this was an exception. The other books from the author had Hermione quite taken with her writing abilities, to the point she could over look the genre of the book and simply enjoy the imagery of it all.

_Maybe this year wouldn't be so bad, after all Slytherin's arm chairs are a lot more comfortable than Gryffindor's._


	5. Chapter 5

_**This is an AU!**_

_**I chose to go about the Malfoy Manor scene differently so it would correspond with where I want to go with this story!**_

**.**

**NOTES: **Sorry I didn't update as soon as I wanted to, I'm sick so I only write whenever I can. I hope I didn't make _too _many errors here seeing how little sleep I've gotten over the past week.

**Also, ease stop personally messaging me asking me to use your otp as the pairing, I'm willing to take fic requests... but I don't want to alter my pet project to a ship I don't want. I'm open to suggestions, but bluntly disregarding my personal tastes is rude. ;v;/ So please think before you message.**

_Thank you to all the people who gave me sources to improve my English with! I've used all of them (and LOVED them) and I hope it shows off in my writing._

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_Hermione was alone._

_Hermione tried to run through the facts in her head. Her name, age and other basic knowledge all there… It was merely her short term memory that was absent. She flipped her hand in an effort to perform wandless magic. She could only perform most charms and some lower level hexes without her wand, but it still made for a valuable asset in war. She quickly casted a charm to find out the time, it was nearly 2 a.m. and Hermione groaned outwardly. She had lost three hours, three very __**precious**__ hours._

_Her head ached unbearably and she grunted in displeasure and pain._

Bloody hell, why did her head hurt so sodding much anyway?

_She tried to get up and immediately regretted the idea; her body simply wasn't prepared for the sudden movement. Her insides suddenly flopped around uncomfortably and she hurled to her right. Her throat burned and tears threatened her eye, much to her dismay. She slowly wiped the budding tears and rubbed the corners of her mouth to remove traces of the spew. She cast a spell to remove the puke from where it was on the ground beside her now upright body._

_She hissed at the tremendous headache that instantly formed when she moved and instantly her hands went to rub her temples. She paused when her fingers came to a risen bump on her forehead. She touched and let out a pathetic whimper. _

That bloody hurt! _Her thoughts reprimanded her for being fool enough to touch it. _

_She slowly started to piece back her memory, it was holey at best. She grimaced._

_Suddenly a voice brought it all back to her._

_"Is the mudblood awake yet? I we need to question her."_

_"I'll go bring her out regardless of her consciousness, Bella."_

_She whimpered. She remembered being in the forest with Harry trying to help him track down the remaining horcruxes._

Shit, she wasn't in the forest anymore. Shit, shit, shit. Bloody hell, where was Harry?

_Hermione looked around the room to find Harry. She saw a slightly slumped body a few feet from her. She lunged for him._

_"Harry," she hissed out. The body moaned in reply and twitched. Hermione's heart broke at the sight of her best friend so obviously hurt. "Harry get up," no answer, "Please." She pleaded and shook the boy until he awoke. Hermione vaguely saw Ron stirring from her whimpers. _

_She swore as she heard the footsteps, she did he best to cast a wandless jinx to make Harry similar to himself, but lacking the important features of him. She hoped that if he looked close enough, but at the same time different enough they'd assume they made a mistake. She doubted it would work, but one can hope._

_By the time Harry woke enough to handle the situation Greyback strutted into the room and grabbed her by a handful of her hair and yanked her to follow him out of the room. Much to the dismay of the newly waken wizards, a nondescript figure came into the room, brandishing a wand at the weaponless boys quickly the boys wrist and ankles were bound. _

_Hermione cried out to them catching one final look before the door of the room separated her and her friends._

_Greyback threw her in front of Bellatrix who was grinning, madness written on her face. Hermione involuntarily shuddered and let out a straggled whimper. She could vaguely hear the sounds of Harry and Ron yelling at their captors, but was soon drawn away from the semi comforts of hearing their voices by Bellatrix's wand pointed at her._

_"Where did you get the sword?! I had Snape sent it to my vault at Gringotts!" Her voice shrieked in fury. Hermione flinched at the sound as it succeeded in making her relatively forgotten headache flame up once again._

_Hermione stared, mouth agape and on her knees, at the crazed witch, she didn't notice when Greyback went back into the room that held her friends. _

_"Now," Bellatrix said in a cold sneer, bending down so that her face was almost an inch away from Hermione's._ "_Where did you get this sword, you filthy little Mudblood?"_

_Hermione flinched; sure Draco had used the word mudblood to refer to her, but never like his aunt did. This wasn't the dull pain of a school yard bully, this was terrifying. Hermione was truthfully terrified. _

_She stuttered out what resembled words the best she could, "I-I d-don't…I m-mean w-we…"_

_"Answer me, now!" Bellatrix screamed in her face, suddenly her voice changed and in her menacing whisper. "Now, you filthy little slut_! _Crucio!"_

_Hermione screamed, she screamed as she had never before. It was a blood curdling scream. Her body was felt as if it was on fire, Greek fire that she had no hope to put out. Alongside the feeling of being burned alive the sensation could be compared to how it would feel to be stabbed over and over acid covered blades. The pain was like nothing she had ever felt before and to think Draco had felt this. If it wasn't for all the pain taking over her system she would have felt a rush of pity for the boy._

_Just as soon as the torture had begun, it ended, and Hermione was left panting on the floor, screaming no more. She could make out the yelling of Ron and Harry, she wasn't sure what they were saying. Her screams had seemly made her partially deaf for a time. _

_She vaguely noted the taste of dirt and blood in her mouth. The dirt from the forest they had been in only a few hours ago and the blood from where she had bitten the inside of her cheek._

_She gradually lifted her head from the floor, which she fell on after her muscles gave out. She saw Bellatrix raise her wand again. She slammed her eyes closed prepared for the next blow of pain and she tried to mentally prepare the best she could._

It's but physical pain, you can overcome it._ She told herself over and over in her head. _

_After a few seconds of nothing her eyes slowly opened again. Bellatrix was grinning down at her._

_"There's plenty more of that, Mudblood," she taunted Hermione, the younger witch let out a subdued sob. "Now, tell me what I need to know!"_

_Hermione almost shouted it out loud. She never wanted to feel that pain again; she just wanted it to end._

_She opened her mouth to speak-_

_"HERMIONE!"_

_Her mouth shut immediately. That voice reminded her exactly what was at risk. Even if she had to endure this torment it was for the greater good, she didn't have a problem inflicting it on others… she could take this pain. For her friends, she could endure it. No, she __**would **__endure it._

_She did her best to meet the witch's, no that's not right… She did her best to meet the bitch's eyes. She looked at her, Hermione's eyes lined with defiant nerve. She took a second to gather her wits to prevent her voice from shaking._

_"No, I will tell you nothing."_

_Bellatrix was livid, no livid was quite the understatement. She snarled, showing Hermione her blackened yellow teeth. Hermione instantly withdrew her eyes in terror._

_"You muddy dirt-veined creature!" she shouted, launching little bits of spit at her as she continued to yell. "How dare you refuse an order from an actual witch, you stupid whore! CRUCIO!"_

_Hermione screamed again in excruciating. Bellatrix's anger made the curse all the more powerful, shredding and slashing apart her resolve. Her eyes shot closed and she refused to grind her teeth in fear of shattering them. Her body twitched and withered from the pain._

_The pain stopped, leaving a familiar aching feeling. Hermione once again convinced herself that the people behind the door to her left were worth saving. She could vaguely make out Ron's voice sobbing out for her and Harry's snarl as he threatened to kill them all. She would do anything for those two voices, even endure a pain worth than hell._

_"I'm going to ask you again!" Bellatrix shouted. "Where did you get this sword? Where?"_

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She screamed.

She slammed upwards in her bed, rocking herself back and forth, she was sobbing uncontrollably.

Pansy shot up from her bed and ran to Hermione.

It was happening again. She was going to pin her onto the stone flooring. She was going to pull out her cursed blade and mark her skin for the rest of her life. Because, in Bellatrix's mind Hermione deserved it, that it was _her _fault for being muggleborn. Naturally, she would scream and scream for hours, but she would always keep their secrets, because that's what they needed, and that's what she was. She was the martyr, she would always been there for Harry, because she was his best friend. She was his bloody best friend.

She cried harder at that thought. She didn't want to be his best friend if that's all she was. She didn't want to be strong enough to take hours of that torment and not tell. She didn't want to be strong; she bloody wanted to be weak. But she wasn't so, she was strong, so she had to endure the pain. She would grit her teeth and take it; she would emerge from it and not cry a tear in front of them. She would silence her rooms so they would never know. She would be their rock; she would guide them after Voldemort was dead. She would hold them when life became overwhelming and she would hold them when they awoke crying.

God, how she honestly _wished_ she was weak.

She longed for the comfort that she had refused herself since the war end two years ago. That's why she left Hogwarts, she knew that it'd take a year for it to be rebuilt, so she went abroad to make up the year she missed. She decided on a whim to come back for her final year to see Harry again. As much as she hated the fact that he would never hold her as high as he seem to with Ronald… She adored Harry, she had fancied for a time when she was younger. Those feelings disappeared during the last months of the war and she instead was filled with a dull resentment towards how he treated her. Hermione still very much loved Harry, but she would never _love-love _him. She required the respect of her significant other much too much to see him.

It was only after a few minutes did she realize that Pansy had been awoken by her screaming and was slowly trying to comfort her. Hermione slowly melted into her hair that slowly petted her.

Her and Pansy had decided it be for the best if they were in the same room. Pansy had approached Minerva after dinner with an idea. She asked if Hermione and she could share a room alone, and after explaining what they had seen in the library the Headmistress approved of the idea. Minerva knew of Hermione's habits to use silencing charms on herself to avoid people knowing of her night terrors, so she only allowed the room under the condition no silencing charms could be used on the people residing inside. However, she did allow them to put on the room to prevent others outside the room from knowing.

Hermione was extremely hesitant as first; she really liked Pansy so she didn't want to make Pansy hate her by keeping her up in the wee hours of the night. Pansy however told her that she had nightmares herself so they'd most likely keep each other up. After the revelation, Hermione was all too happy to oblige, she really liked the girl.

Soon Hermione had nodded off after mumbling a thank you. Pansy smiled and went back to her bed.

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It was early when Hermione had awoken, three hours earlier than she had to be up. Her headache greatly and she reached for her nightstand for a calming draught. After taking it she ran through her schedule in her head. Since she was a seventh year she wouldn't have to worry about most of her classes, she had taken so many with the help of the time turner in the past years that she had a few free timeslots; she planned on filling those with library trips naturally. The only thing she had to worry about was that this was her final year of N.E.W.T.S.

She grimaced, since the war she had found little solace in school work, she still loved to read about subjects but the prospect of sitting in a crowded room listen to teachers held no appeal to her anymore. Her favorite professors had already left the school or died, most being the latter. She had grown so attached to them she had a hard time stomaching the idea of someone replacing them.

Yet another reason I left, I didn't want to see foreign teachers in familiar halls. I would prefer going somewhere I knew no one and none of the teachers reminded me of everything I had lost. Strangely she was famous even in France; her escapades with Harry and Ron were held with much over-romanticized splendor in other countries apparently. The girls at the academy had asked her how Harry was in bed, much to her embarrassment, and kept asking for months after she had denied ever sleeping with him.

The only thing she really missed about France was a single girl she had met in their library. She was frail and quiet; they had hit it off over a book they both liked. Her and Rose, the girl, seemed to be one of the few muggleborns there. Unlike at Hogwarts there wasn't a lot of blood prejudice in the school yard; it was mostly based on looks, power levels and popularity. To say the least, Rose had expected Hermione to rise to the top quickly and without problems.

It had been Rose who taught her to tame her tight curls and what spells to cast to do her makeup. Rose hadn't been particularly vain, but she had taught Hermione that sometimes you need to be pretty to make people listen to your opinions. It had been a piece of advice she had taken to heart and that had improved her school life and had made living in general easier. She know knew how to use her looks to her advantage and she knew how to act to get a wizard wrapped around her finger. Not that she'd ever use it, Hermione was too standoffish for that… and it wasn't like she had anyone she particularly wanted to do it to.

She decided to lie on her back to observe the ceiling, she wondering how many days she could hold herself in the room before Minerva forced her to attend classes. She could probably get away with a few days; I'm already ahead of all the material they're teaching anyway. She rolled on to her stomach and sighed. She plopped her face into her pillow and sighed, maybe a shower would help her think.


End file.
